Knitting machine for forming non-run pockets in hosiery



1968 v w. H. MCGINTY ETAL 3, 67,144

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NONRUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Nov. 30, 1964 9 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORfii WALLACE- H. MQGWTY, JAMES W. SOUTHERS and JAMES) M. TAYLOR.

ATTORNEYS 6, 1968 w. H. MCGINTY ETAL 3,367,144

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY 9 Sheets-Sheet Filed NOV. 30, 1964 INVENTORSI WALLACE H. MEG NTY,

JAMES Sou-wees ancl JAM Es M. Tm L012 BYWjM J%ZAL ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 w. H. MCGINTY ETAL ,1

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed NOV. 30, 1964 9 Sheets-Sheet 3 I II I Illllllillllllllllll l-ll INVENTORS;

WALLACE H. M.G\NTY, JAME5 Sam-22s andJAMEE; M. TAYLOR BYWM$ M 9%;

ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 MCGINTY ETAL 3,367,144

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Nov. 150, 1964 INVENTORS: WALLACE H. MQG \NTY,

JAM as \v. Sowmzzs ancZJIAMEs M. TAYLOR BY ,fif/Z// M ATTORNEY w. H. M G|NTY ETAL 3,367,144

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN FOCKETS IN HOSIERY Feb. 6, 1968 9 Sheets-Sheet Filed Nov. 30, 1964 INVENTORS'.

BYW

5 M m NHO Y w J? n 0A A H fiw wa AAM wJJ 6, 1968 w. H. MCGINTY ETAL 3,367,144

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NONRUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Nov. 30, 1964 9 Sheets-Sheet e 2% y .1 ZH

1968 w. H. MCGINTY ETAL 3,367,144

KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN' HOSIERY Filed Nov. 30, 1964 9 Sheets-Sheet INVENTORS: WALLACE- H. M.G\ NTY,

JAMEfi \M Scum-E25 ancZJAMEED M. TAYLOR ATTORNEYS KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Nov 30, 1964 F 1968 w. H. MCGINTY ETAL.

' 9 Sheets-Sheet 3 llllliwrllx INVENTORSI WALLACE H. MQGmTY, JAME'E') Sou-wees and JAMEs M.TAYLO1? BYW flew ML ATTORNEYS KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIEHY Filed NOV. 30, 1964 vFfib- 1968 w. H. MCGINTY ETAL 9 Sheets-Sheet a INVENTORS'I- WALLACE- H. MQGINTY, JAMEs W. Sou'T H525 and JAMEs M. TAYLOR BYW ATTORNEYS 3,367,144 Patented F eb. 6, 1968 3,367,144 KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NfiN-RUN ETS IN HGSIERY Wallace H. McGinty, Belmont, James W. Sonthers, Mount Holly, and James M. Taylor, Belmont, N.C., assignors, by mesne assignments, to Hanes Corporation, Winston- Salem, N.C., a corporation of North Carolina Continnationdn-part of application Ser. No. 396,231, Sept. 11 1-, 1964. This application Nov. 30, 1964, Ser. No. 414,637

1 Claim. (CI. 66-48) This is a continuation-in-part of our application Ser. No. 396,231, filed Sept. 14, 1964. This invention is an improvement over the above-noted prior application that discloses a knitting machine for forming non-run fabric in the fashioned heel and/or toe pocket of seamless stockings, such as is disclosed in another of our copending applications Ser. No. 354,998, filed Mar. 26, 1964 and now abandoned.

The knitting machine disclosed in our prior application Ser. No. 396,231 is adapted to knit non-run fabric in the heel and/or toe pocket of a seamless stocking by reciprocatorily knitting partial courses while knitting fashioned partial courses of plain stitches alternating with fashioned partial courses of plain stitches and tucks. This machine of our prior application is provided with auxiliary pattern control means which include a needle cam that is operable to raise certain needles to shed level while permitting the remaining needles to remain at tuck level during every other swing of the needle cylinder in a forward direction, and jack cam means that is operable to raise certain pattern jacks and the corresponding needles to shed level while permitting the remaining pattern jacks and corresponding needles to remain at tuck level during the remaining forward swings of the needle cylinder. In this machine, all of the needles are raised and form plain stitches during the knitting of the partial courses formed as the needle cylinder swings in a reverse direction. This machine will operate to produce non-run fabric in the toe of a stocking having a plain toe with single narrowed and widened gussets. However, this type knitting machine cannot be easily utilized to knit non-run fabric in the toe of a stocking having a gusset toe and the pattern of plain stitches and tucks that can be produced in the fashioned pockets is somewhat limited.

It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved knitting machine which is adapted to knit non-run fabric in the toe of a seamless stocking having a gusset toe and which is also adapted to knit varied patterns of plain stitches and tucks in the fashioned pockets of seamless stockings.

It is a more specific object of the present invention to provide an improved knitting machine of the type described having auxiliary needle selector means operable to raise selected pattern jacks and the corresponding needles to shed level while permitting the needles associated with the remaining pattern jacks to remain at tuck level during each swing of the needle cylinder in the forward direction while knitting fashioned heel and/or toe pockets.

It is another specific object of the present invention to provide an improved knitting machine of the type described having main needle selector means positioned in advance of the knitting station and operable during rotary knitting to selectively position the needles at knitting and tuck level, and wherein the auxiliary needle control means is positioned between the main needle control means and the knitting station and is operable during reciprocatory knitting to selectively position the needles at knitting and tucking level with each forward swing of the needle cylinder.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objects will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary view of the upper portion of one side of a single-feed circular hosiery knitting machine with the present invention applied thereto;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary front elevation of the knitting machine, looking inwardly from the right-hand side of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional plan view taken substantially along the line 33 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary side view of the knitting machine, looking at the opposite side of the machine from that shown in FIGURE 1 and inwardly from the righthand side of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional plan view taken substantially along the line 5-5 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 66 in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 7 is an isometric view of the right-hand portion of FIGURE 3, looking in the direction of the arrow 7 in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 8 is a view similar to FIGURE 7, but showing only the right-hand portion and illustrating the selector jack rocking arm and the manner in which it is controlled;

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the auxiliary selector drum, being taken substantially along the line 9-9 in FIGURE 3;

FIGURES 10-13 are horizontal sectional views taken substantially along the respective lines 1010 through 1313 in FIGURE 9;

FIGURE 14 is a somewhat schematic developed view of the cams surrounding the needle cylinder and taken as if looking outwardly from inside the needle cylinder with the cams in flattened out condition and showing the manner in which the needles and pattern jacks are raised and lowered when the needle cylinder is swinging in a forward direction during the knitting of the partial courses in the non-run fashion pockets of the stocking;

FIGURE 15 is a side elevation of a ladys seamless stocking with a heel and toe formed of non-run fabric therein; and

FIGURE 16 is an enlarged elevation of the foot portion of the stocking shown in FIGURE 15, illustrating in greater detail the manner in which the fashion gussets in the heel and toe pockets are formed of the non-run fabric.

The present invention is shown applied to a Scott & Williams circular hosiery knitting machine of the type shown in the U8. patent to Robert W. Scott, No. 1,282,- 958, issued Oct. 29, 1918 and equipped with a primary needle control means such as is disclosed in the US. patent to Albert E. Page, No. 1,969,853, issued Aug. 14, 1934. The knitting machine is also equipped with a dial and transfer elements adapted to automatically form a turned welt at the upper end of a stocking in a similar manner to that disclosed in the US. patent to Albert E. Page et al., No. 2,117,208, issued May 10, 1938. Only those portions of the knitting machine which are necessary for an understanding of the present invention have been shown in the drawings. Any parts not shown may be found in the above-noted patents or in the Model K-N Machine Parts Catalogue issued by Scott & Williams, Inc., Laconia, NH, and dated June 1955.

The conventional parts of the knitting machine will first be described and then the modifications and additions required to knit non-run fabric in the heel and/or toe pockets will then be described. The machine has a frame 20 (FIGURE 2) supporting the usual drive mechanism including a main drive shaft 21 having belt driven pulleys 22, 23 and 24 and a crank handle 25 supported on one end. The pulley 22 is an idler pulley, the pulley 23 is a slow speed pulley and the pulley 24 is a high speed drive pulley. A high speed pinion 26 is supported on the main shaft 21 and drivingly engages a high speed gear 27 (FIG- URES 2 and 4) which is rotated one time for each four rotations of the main drive shaft 21.

A rotary pinion 30 and a reciprocatory pinion 31 are supported on the main drive shaft 21 and are selectively drivingly connected thereto by a longitudinally shiftable clutch element 32 (FIGURE 2). The clutch element 32 is controlled by a conventional yoke 33 for shifting movement between driving engagement with the rotary pinion 30 and the reciprocatory pinion 31 to selectively impart rotation or reciprocation to the main shaft 21. The lefthand end of the main shaft 21 is provided with a cylinder drive bevel gear 24 and a dial drive bevel gear 35. The cylinder drive gear 34 extends up into a lower bed plate 36 where it drivingly engages a needle cylinder bevel gear 34a (FIGURE 6) that is in turn supported for rotation in the lower bed plate 36. The right-hand portion of the lower bed plate 36 is suitably secured to the upper lefthand portion of the frame 26 (FIGURE 2). The needle cylinder bevelgear 34a has an upstanding tubular portion 341) (FIGURE 6) that supports a slotted needle cylinder 40 in the usual manner for rotation and reciprocation. The needle cylinder 40 has needles N (FIGURE 14), auxiliary jacks A and pattern jacks I supported for vertical movement in the slots.

The needle cylinder 40 extends upwardly through an upper bed plate 42 (FIGURE 2) which is supported in spaced relationship above the lower bed plate 36 by a pair of standards 43, 44 (FIGURE 3). The needle cylinder 40 extends upwardly beyond the upper bed plate 42 and has a sinker bed 45 suitably suported on its upper end..The sinker bed 45 contains the usual sinkers, not shown, that are supported for radial movement between the needles. A sinker cap 46 is supported on the sinker bed 45 and contains the usual sinker operating cams, not shown, for advancing and retracting the sinkers between the needles. The needle cylinder 40 may be raised and lowered by a cylinder raising tube 50 (FIGURE 2). The upper end of the tube 50 extends up into the lower bed plate 36 (FIGURE 6) and supports a ball bearing 50a that is engaged by the lower ends of cylinder support pins 50b. The pins, 50b extend through the cylinder bevel gear 34a and support the cylinder 40 on their upper ends. The lower portion of the tube 50 is supported for vertical movement by conventional means, not shown, to provide variations in stitch length by conventional vertical movement of the cylinder and fashion the tubular stocking blank as it is being knit.

A bevel gear 51 (FIGURE 2) meshes with the dial drive bevel gear 35 and is suitably secured on the lower end of a vertical drive shaft 52 which extends upwardly through the lower bed plate 36, the standard 43, the upper bed plate 42 and a support standard 53. The upper end of the vertical drive shaft 52 has a bevel gear fixed thereto, not shown, that meshes with the conventional dial drive mechanism. The dial drive imparts rotation to the conventional dial and transfer points, not shown, that are positioned inside of a latch ring. The latch ring is indicated at 56 in FIGURE 14 and has a throat opening 57 in which the usual yarn feeding fingers 58 are supported for movement into and out of position to feed yarn Y to the hooks of the needles as they pass thereby.

As shown in FIGURE 14, the usual fixed needle cams surround the needle cylinder. These cams are suitably secured inside of the upper bed plate 42 and include a lefthand end cam 60, a right-hand end cam 61, a needle raise cam 62 and a ring cam 63. A knitting station is provided beneath the throat opening 57 in the latch ring 56 and includes the usual left-hand or running stitch cam 64, a right-hand or reverse stitch cam 65, a top center cam 66 a bottom center cam 67. Suitable landing cams 68 and 4 69 are positioned beneath the respective stitch earns 64, 65. Narrowing picks 70 and 71 are associated with the stitch cams 64, 65 for engagement with the leading needle butt of active groups of needles to raise the same to in active level to pass above the center stitch cam 66, during certain fashioning operations.

The reverse stitch cam 65 is supported on a bracket 73 (FIGURE 5) which is in turn supported for rearward sliding movement on the upper bed plate 42 to at times move the reversestitch cam outwardly away from the needle cylinder so that it Will not engage the butts of the needles, for purposes to be later described. The means for moving the bracket 73 and the reverse stitch cam 65 out of operative position will also be later described.

The running stitch cam 64 is suitably supported in a conventional bracket, not shown, for vertical movement by means of a lever arm 74 (FIGURE 5), one end of which engages a control pin 75 that controls the vertical position of the running stitch cam 64. The running stitch cam 64 is normally urged upwardly by spring means, not shown. The control linkage for operating the lever 74 to raise and lower the running stitch cam 64 will be described later.

Conventional radially movable needle butt engaging cams are also provided in advance of the knitting station and include a make-up divider cam 80, a needle leveling cam 81, a gusset cam 82, and a transfer cam 83. The cams 83 are supported for radial movement in a cam block assembly 85, shown with the inner portion broken away in FIGURE 5 and supported on the upper bed plate 42. Suitable control crank arms 86 and 87 control the conventional operation of the cams 80-83 during the make-up and transfer operations by means of respective thrust rods 88 and 89, having suitable operating cams on their upper ends.

The lower ends of the thrust rods 88, 89 extend down to and are engaged by suitable cams on a main pattern drum 90 (FIGURE 1) which is supported for rotation on a shaft 91. The outer end of the shaft 91 is suitably in a bracket 92 and the other end is suitably supported in the frame 20. Rotation of the main pattern drum 90 is controlled by means of the conventional pattern chain, not shown, to impart step-by-step movement to the pattern drum 90 in a predetermined sequence and at predetermined times.

A striper drum support shaft 94 (FIGURE 3) is supported at one end in a support bracket 95 which is in turn connected to the frame 20. The opposite end of the shaft 94 is supported in a bracket 96 (FIGURE 1) which is connected at its lower end to the bracket 92. A striper drum 97 is supported for rotation on the shaft 94 and is moved in a step-by-step manner by means of a racking pawl 98 (FIGURE 3) which is raised and lowered into racking engagement with a racking gear 99 on the striper drum 97. The forward end of the racking pawl 98 is suitably connected to a lever 100 (FIGURE 1) which is provided with a cam engaging roller 100a that normally is urged into resilient engagement with a double-throw operating cam 101 that is fixed on the main shaft 21. The raising and lowering of the racking pawl 98 into and out of engagement with the racking gear 99 on the striper drum 97 is controlled by means of a conventional controller arm, not shown, to raise and lower the racking pawl 98 in accordance with a predetermined pattern, by means of suitable cams on the main pattern drum 90.

As shown in FIGURE 3, the striper drum 97 has cam races provided thereon and in which suitable cams are provided to control various operations of the machine. The cams on the striper drum 97 are adapted to engage the lower ends of downwardly depending control levers 103 which are pivotally supported at their upper ends on a shaft 104 (FIGURE 1). The shaft 104 is suitably supported adjacent opposite ends on the brackets 95 and 96. Only one of the control levers 103 is used in connection with the present invention and it will be specifically described later.

The machine is provided with the conventional main needle selector means, of the type shown in the aforesaid Patent No. 1,969,853. The main needle selector is positioned in advance of the knitting station and includes a selector drum 110 that is supported for rotation on the lower bed plate 36 and provided with the usual pattern elements which have removable butts thereon. The butts of the pattern elements extend outwardly of the selector drum 110 for engagement with the actuating tail portions 111a of a stack of selector levers 111 (FIGURE 3). The lower end of the selector drum 116 is provided with a racking gear 112 which is adapted to be engaged by a racking pawl 113 (FIGURE 3). A pawl control plate, not shown, is provided for at times maintaining the racking pawl 113 out of engagement with the racking gear 112 to thereby stop step-by-step rotation of the selector drum 110.

The racking pawl 113 is suitably connected to the forward end of a control link 114, the opposite end of which is connected intermediate the ends of a lever 115 (FIGURE 3). The inner end of the lever 115 is pivotally supported on the lower bed plate 36 and the outer end is suitably connected to the forward end of a split connector link 116. The connector link 116 is made in two pieces so that the effective length of the link 116 may be varied. The rear end of the connector link 116 is suitably connected to the forward end of a racking lever 117. The rear end of the racking lever 117 is pivotally supported as at 120 on the frame 20.

A control shaft 121 (FIGURE 4) is suitably supported for vertical movement in the lever 117 and has a cam engaging roller 122 supported on its lower end. The con trol shaft 121 and the cam engaging roller 122 are normally urged upwardly to the position shown in FIGURE 4 so that the upper end of the control shaft 121 is in engagement with the forward end of a lever arm 124. The lever arm 124 is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the racking lever 117 and the rear end is suitably connected to the upper end of a control rod 125.

The lower end of the control rod 125 is suitably connected to pattern means, not shown, for at times moving the forward end of the lever arm 124 downwardly to thereby push the control shaft 121 downwardly a predetermined amount to a position where the cam engaging roller 122 is in alinement for engagement by suitable cams 127 on the high speed gear 27. Each time that the roller 122 is engaged by one of the cams 127, the forward end of the racking lever 117 is moved outwardly of the frame 211 (FIGURE 3) and the links 114, 116 are moved rearwardly to impart a racking motion to the racking pawl 113. The roller 122 is normally moved down into alinement with the cams 127 to rack the selector drum 110 while the needle cylinder is rotating. The control shaft 121 and roller 122 may also be pushed down to a greater extent to be engaged by other cams on the high speed gear 27, for purposes associated with the present invention and which will be later described.

As best shown in FIGURE 3, the selector levers 111 are each provided with pattern jack engaging portions 111k on one end and control tail portions 111s which are adapted to be engaged by control plates 130 only one of which is shown in FIGURE 3. The control plates 131 are adapted to at times move selected groups of the selector levers 111 to inoperative position so that their pattern jack engaging portions 111]; are moved outwardly away from the needle cylinder and out of engagement with any of the pattern jacks J.

The control plates 130 are secured to control levers 131, 132 and 133 (FIGURE 1) which are pivotally supported intermediate their ends on a post 133a. The forward ends of control links 134, 135 and 136 are connected to the levers 131, 132 and 133 while the rear ends of the control links 134-135 are suitably connected to the upper ends of conventional control levers similar to the one illustrated at 140 in FIGURE 1. The lower end of the control lever 140 is adapted to engage the main pattern drum and suitable earns, not shown, for controlling the operation of the control levers 131133 and to at times move groups of the selector levers 111 into and out of engagement with the pattern elements in the selector drum 110. The portions 111a of the se lector levers 111 are normally urged into engagement with the pattern elements in the selector drum by tension springs 142 (FIGURE 3) which are connected at one end to the selector levers 111 and at their other ends to a vertical post 143. A racking handle 144 (FIGURES 1-3) is pivotally supported on the lower bed plate 36 and is at time operated to rotate the selector drum 110.

As best shown in FIGURE 14, the jack engaging portions 1111) of the selector levers 111 are positioned in advance of a jack raising cam 145 which has an outwardly extending stem portion 146 (FIGURE 3) that is in turn mounted for radial adjustment in the lower bed plate 36. The selector jacks J are of the conventional type and have lower stepped cam engaging butts 147 (FIGURE 14) and a plurality of removable selector butts 148 that are adapted to be controlled by the selector levers 111. Every other jack J is provided with a selector butt 148a and the remaining selector jacks I are provided with selector butts 14% (FIGURE 14) for use in connection with the present invention and in a manner to be presently described.

In normal operation, the needles N are selectively raised and permitted to remain at tuck level by means of the selector levers 111 and the jack raising cam 145 while the needle cylinder is rotating in a counterclockwise direction. This pattern selection is sometimes used to provide a pattern of tuck stitches in the welt and/or shadow of the stocking and at other times is used to knit a pattern of tuck stitches in the leg to form a micro-mesh or non-run fabric therein. During conventional operation, the selector jacks J are rocked outwardly at their lower ends in the slots in the needle cylinder 40 in advance of the selector levers 111 so that the stepped butts 147 on their lower ends would normally engage and ride up the jack raising cam 145 to raise the jacks J. Raising the jacks I causes the corresponding auxiliary jacks A and the needles N to be raised to shed level prior to reaching the knitting station so that these needles form plain stitch loops after they pick up the yarn from the yarn feed finger 58 at the throat opening 57. Predetermined needles N may be selected to remain at a low level to form tucks at the main knitting station by rocking the lower ends of the corresponding jacks I back into the slots of the needle cylinder so that the jack raising butt 147 moves inside of the jack raising cam 145 without engaging the same. These jacks J are rocked back inwardly of the needle cylinder by engagement of the butts 148 by the selector levers 111.

The butts 147 of the jacks I that are not raised by the jack cam 145 follow the respective level dash-dot pathways 152 (FIGURE 14) While the butts of the corresponding auxiliary jacks A move along the level dash-dot pathway 154 and the butts of the corresponding needles N move along the level dash-dot pathway 155 while the hooks thereof follow the level dash-dot pathway 156. As the hooks of these needles N pass the throat opening 57, they are lowered when the butts engage the running stitch cam 64. These needles are lowered to stitch forming level after they have picked up the yarn Y from the yarn feeding finger 58, however, they form tucks since they have not been previously raised to shed level.

The jacks I that are raised by the cam 145 raise the corresponding auxiliary jacks A so that their butts follow the dotted pathway 161 and the butts of the corresponding needles N are raised along the dotted pathway 162 while the hooks of these needles are raised along 7 the dotted pathway 163. These needles are thus raised to shed level so that the stitch loops thereon move below the latches of the needles. These raised needles N then pick up the yarn Y at the throat opening 57 and are then lowered by the center stitch cam 66 and the running stitch cam 64 to form plain stitch loops.

The machine is also provided with the usual radially movable switch cams 165 and 166 (FIGURE 14). The switch cam 165 is moved inwardly at times to raise certain groups of needles N to an inactive level, indicated by the dash-dot pathway 167, so that they pass above the center stitch cam 66 when the needle cylinder is reciprocated. The switch cam 166 is moved inwardly at other times to lower groups of needles from the raised inactive level to the lowered active level occupied by the middle group of needles in FIGURE 14.

The switch cams 165, 166 are mounted for radial movement into and out of operative position in the usual switch cam block 168 (FIGURE which is in turn supported on the upper bed plate 42. Radial movement of the switch cams 165, 166 is controlled by means of a horizontal control arm 170 (FIGURES 2 and 5) which is secured intermediate its ends on the upper end of a vertical control rod 171. As best shown in FIGURE 5, the right-hand end of the control arm 170 is adapted to engage suitable control levers to position the radially movable switch cams 165, 166 in the proper position with vertical movement of the control rod 171.

The left-hand end of the control arm 170 is provided with a resiliently supported bunter 173 (FIGURE 2), the upper end of which is adapted to engage the outer end of a control wire 174 that is fixed at its inner end in one end of a widening pick control shaft 175. The widening pick control shaft 175 is supported for limited rotation in a hunter post 176, the lower end of which is supported on the upper bed plate 42. The upper end of the hunter post 176 is adapted to support a forward extension of the latch ring, not shown. The rear portion of the latch ring is pivotally supported on the upper end of a latch ring pivot post 1760, only the lower pOrtiOn of which is shown in FIGURES 1 and 4. The front portion of the sinker cap 46 is provided with lugs in which adjustment screws 177, 178 (FIGURE 2) are supported for alternate engagement with opposite sides of the hunter post 176 when the needle cylinder is reciprocated.

The outer end of a widening pick 180 (FIGURES l, 4 and 14) is pivotally supported in the control shaft 175 and the inne end is positioned closely adjacent the needle cylinder for engagement with the butts of leading inactive needles to lower the same from the inactive to the active level, in a well-known manner.

The parts heretofore described are conventional parts of a Scott & Williams KN knitting machine and it is with this type of knitting machine that the present invention is described and shown in the drawings, however, it is to be understood that the present invention may also be applied to other types of circular hosiery knitting machines.

While the present invention is particularly adapted for knitting non-run fabric in the heel and/or toe pockets of seamless stockings, it may also be used to form other patterns of tuck and plain stitches in the heel and/ or toe as well as in other portions of the stocking.

In our above-n0ted copending application Ser. No. 354,998, now abandoned, a fashioned pocket is knit of non-run fabric and includes alternating partial courses of tight or small plain stitch loops with intervening partial courses of loose or long alternating plain stitches and tucks. As is well known, in this type of non-run fabric, alternate plain stitch loops of the tight courses substantially straighten out, drawing up the legs of the connected plain stitch loops in the succeeding loose course to form locking stitch loops that prevent runs.

In order to knit this type of non-run fabric in the heel and/ or toe pocket while the needle cylinder is reciprocating, the present knitting machine has been provided with auxiliary pattern control means which generally includes: (A) means for lowering the left-hand or running stitch cam during the knitting of the fashioned pocket so that needle cylinder to an inoperative position out of engage ment with the needle butts during each swing of the needle cylinder in a forward direction and for moving the reverse stitch cam into operative position to engage the needle butts with each swing of the needle cylinder in a reverse direction; and (C) auxiliary jack selector means that is operable to raise alternate pattern jacks to thereby raise the corresponding needles to shed level while permitting the intervening jacks to remain in a lowered position to thereby permit the corresponding needles to remain at tuck level during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in a forward direction. During intervening swings of the needle cylinder in a forward direction, the auxiliary jack selector means is operable (by means of the pattern jacks) to raise intervening needles to shed level while permitting the alternate needles to remain at tuck level.

The means for lowering the left-hand stitch cam 64 includes the lever 74 (FIGURE 5) which is suitably secured to the inner end of a control shaft 182. The control shaft 182 is supported for oscillation intermediate its ends in a latch opener support bracket 183 which is fixed at its lower end on the upper bed plate 42 (FIG- URE- 1). The outer end of the control shaft 182 has one end of a control lever 184 fixed thereto and its opposite end has one end of a stub shaft 185 fixed therein. The upper end of a control rod 186 is suitably connected to the stub shaft 185 and extends downwardly (FIGURE 1) through a guide plate 187 which is supported on the lower bed plate 36.

The lower end of the control rod 186 is resiliently coupled to a lower reading end portion 190 by a sleeve 191 which has a compression spring therein. The lower reading end 198 is adapted to engage cams 192, only one of which is shown (FIGURE 1), attached to the outer end of the main pattern drum 90. The reading end portion 190 is supported for vertical movement in the hori- Zontal leg of a guide bracket 193 which is suitably secured to the support bracket 92.

The main pattern drum 90 is moved to the position shown in FIGURE 1 during the knitting of the heel pocket, with the cam 192 in engagement with the reading end portion 190 of the control rod 186. The control rod 186 is thus raised to thereby lower the running stitch cam 64 to a level slightly below the level of the reverse stitch cam 65 so that longer stitch loops are formed when the needle cylinder swings in a forward direction. After completion of the knitting of the fashioned heel pocket, the main pattern drum 90 is rotated in a step-by-step manner so that the reading end portion 190 of the control rod 186 moves oft of the cam 192 and the stitch cam 64 moves back to its normal knitting position, at the same level as the stitch cam 65.

When the toe pocket is to be knit, the main pattern drum 90 moves around to position another cam (similar to cam 192) in engagement with the reading end portion 190 and thereby lower the stitch cam 64. In order to limit the downward movement of the running stitch cam 64, the lower end of an adjustment stop screw 195 (FIG- URE 1) is adapted to engage the outer end of the lever 134. The medial portion of the screw 195 is threadably supported in the horizontal leg of a support bracket 196 which also has a vertical leg that is in turn suitably secured to the latch opener support bracket 183. Thus, the screw 195 may be adjusted to limit upward movement of the control rod 186 and thereby limit downward movement of the running stitch cam 64.

The means for moving the right-hand or reverse stitch cam 65 outwardly to an inoperative position during each forward swing of the needle cylinder and inwardly to an operative position during reverse swings of the needle cylinder includes the support bracket 73 (FIGURE on which the stitch cam 65 is supported. The front end of a control link 200 is suitably secured to the support bracket 73 and the rear end thereof is connected to the lower end of a T-shaped lever 201 (FIGURES 1 and 4). The inner end of the lever 201 is suitably supported on the latch ring support post 176a and the outer end is suitably connected to the upper end of a thrust rod 202. The lower end of the thrust rod 202 is suitably connected to the forward end of an extension 103a of one of the control levers, indicated at 1103b in FIGURE 3.

The lower free end of the lever 10311 is adapted to be engaged by suitable cams 204 which are evenly spaced around the striper drum 97. As has been explained, the striper drum 97 is moved in a step-by-step manner in timed relationship with movement of the needle cylinder so that one of the cams 204 engages the control lever 103i) to raise the thrust rod 202 and thereby move the reverse stitch cam 65 outwardly to an inoperative posi tion during each forward swing of the needle cylinder. The cam 204 then moves out of engagement with the control lever 1031) to thereby lower the thrust rod 202 and move the stitch cam 65 inwardly to the operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in a reverse direction.

The auxiliary jack selector means includes an auxiliary selector drum broadly indicated at 210, and best shown in assembled condition in FIGURE 9. Upper and lower angle brackets 211 and 212 rotatably support the upper and lower ends of a vertical shaft 213 (FIGURE 9). The lower angle bracket 212 has a bearing collar 214 fixedly secured thereto and a friction sleeve 215 is provided in the bearing collar 214 to prevent free rotation and offer some resistance to rotation of the shaft 213. A pawl control plate 216 is supported for pivotal movement on the shaft 213 and between spacers 217 and 218. The operation of the pawl control plate 216 will be presently described.

A racking gear 220 is adjustably supported, as by a set screw 220a (FIGURE 9), on the shaft 213 and has suitable teeth which are at times engaged by a racking pawl 222 to impart step-by-step rotation to the shaft 213. As best shown in FIGURE 7, the racking pawl 222 is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the upper end of a pivot post 223 and its outer free end is urged in a counterclockwise direction by a tension spring 224. One end of the tension spring 224 is connected to the free end of the racking pawl 222 and the other end is connected to one end of a spring perch 225 which is in turn suitably supported on the racking link 116. The lower end of the pivot post 223 is fixed in the medial portion of the racking link 116.

At times, such as during the knitting of the heel and toe pockets, the pawl control plate 216 (FIGURE 13) is moved to the solid line position shown in FIGURE 13 so that the racking pawl 222 is held out of racking engagement with the teeth of the rack gear 220 even though the racking link 116 and pawl 112 may continue to move back and forth. On the other hand, during the knitting of the heel and toe pocket, the pawl control plate 216 is moved to the dotted line position shown in FIGURE 13 so that the pawl 222 will engage and move the racking gear 220, along with the shaft 213, in a stepby-step manner and in a counterclockwise direction.

The forward end of a longitudinally adjustable control link 227 is pivotally connected to the pawl control plate 216 (FIGURE 13) and its rear end is suitably connected to the lower end of a control pin 228 (FIGURE 7), the upper end of which is suitably connected in one end of a control lever 230. The control lever 230 is pivotally supported intermediate its ends as at 231 on a horizontal portion of a support bracket 232. The lower end of the support bracket 232 is suitably secured to the upper surface of the frame 20. The rearmost end of the control lever 230 is positioned adjacent a thrust rod 233 which supports a cam plate 234. The lower end of the thrust rod 233 is in engagement with the main pattern drum 90. During the knitting of the heel and toe pockets, suitable cams, not shown, on the main pattern drum raise the thrust rod 233 so that the cam plate 234 imparts movement to the control lever 230 and the control link 227 to move the pawl control plate 216 from the solid line position shown in FIGURE 13 to the dotted line position, permitting the racking pawl 222 to engage the teeth of the racking gear 220.

During reciprocation of the needle cylinder, while the heel and toe of the stocking are being knit, the high speed gear 27 (FIGURE 4) rotates one-half of a revolution as the needle cylinder swings in a forward direction and then rotates the remaining one-half revolution as the needle cylinder swings in a reverse direction. For purposes to be later described, the racking gear 220 must be rotated one step at the beginning and another step at the end of each forward swing of the needle cylinder. Therefore, identical cams 235 'and 236 are provided on one side of the high speed gear 27.

At the beginning of the knitting of the heel and toe pockets, the roller 122 is lowered into alinernent to be successively engaged by the cams 235, 236 at the beginning and end of each forward stroke of the needle cylinder. As the roller 122 (FIGURE 4) is engaged by the cam 235, the pawl link 116 and the racking pawl 222 (FIGURE 7) are moved toward the rear of the machine to move the rack gear 220 a step in rotation, a distance equal to the space between adjacent teeth on the racking gear 220. As the roller 122 moves off of the cam 235 (FIGURE 4), the racking pawl link 116 moves forwardly and the racking pawl 222 engages the next successive tooth of the racking gear 220. As the cam 236 engages the roller 122, the pawl control link 116 and the pawl 222 are moved rearwardly to again impart a step in rotation to the control shaft 213 and the racking gear 220, 'at the end of the forward swing of the needle cylinder.

Referring to FIGURE -9, it will be noted that a cam wheel support hub 240 is adjustably supported, as by a set screw 240a, on the control shaft 213 and that an annular separator flange 241 is formed integrally with the hub 240. A pair of selector control pattern wheels 242, 243 are adjustably supported on the hub 240 and adjacent opposite sides of the flange 241 by any suitable means, such as set screws 242a and 243a. The selector control pattern wheels 242, 243 are provided with respective notches 244, 245 (FIGURES 11 and 12) which are offset relative to each other in their circumferential positions, relative to the control shaft 213.

The reading finger portions of selector levers 246, 247 'are resiliently urged into engagement with the respective selector control pattern wheels 242, 243 by respective tension springs 248, 249. Corresponding ends of the tension springs 248, 249 are connected to the free tail ends of the respective selector levers 246, 247 and the other ends are suitably supported adjacent the upper end of a spring perch post 250 (FIGURE 7), the lower end of which is suitably secured in the pawl link 116.

The selector levers 246, 247 are pivotally supported intermediate their ends on a post 252, the lower end of which is fixed in the horizontal upper portion of a substantially Z-shaped support bracket 253, the lower horizontal portion of which is suitably secured to the lower bed plate 36. Suitable spacers 255 and 255a (FIGURE 2) are provided on opposite sides of the selector lever 247 and a collar 256 is fixed on the upper end of the post 252 to hold the selector levers 246, 247 in proper spaced apart position thereon. Thus, the inner selector jack engaging free ends of the selector levers 246, 247 are adapted to engage the separated selector butts 148a, 1481) on the jacks J (FIGURE 6).

The inner free ends of the selector levers 246, 247 are maintained in the correct spaced apart relationship by means of a vertically disposed guide plate 257 (FIG- URE 6) which has horizontal slots adapted to receive and guidingly support the outer ends of the selector levers 246, 247. The lower end of the vertical guide plate 257 forms one side of a guide bracket 258 (FIGURE 6) which is suitably secured to the lower bed plate 36. Screws 258:: support the lower end of the guide plate 257 on an upstanding portion of the guide bracket 258 and hold a plate 25812 therebetween. The plate 258b serves as the upper guide for a stem 259 of a jack push-in cam 260. The jack push-in cam 260 is normally urged to the outermost inoperative position shown in FIGURE 6 by a tension spring 262, one end of which is connected to the stem portion 259 and the other end of which is suitably connected to the bed plate 36. As shown in FIGURE 14, the jack push-in cam 260 is positioned beside the conventional jack raising cam 145 and during rotary knitting, this jack push-in cam 260 is moved inwardly to the operative position, by means to be presently described, to maintain the lower ends of the jacks J back in the slots of the needle cylinder after they pass the jack raising cam 145. The leading edge of the jack pushin cam 268 is beveled as at 260a (FIGURE 14) so that the lower ends of any jacks I that pass over the jack raising cam 145 are guided back into the slots of the needle cylinder thereby.

During rotary knitting, the jack push-in cam 260 is moved inwardly to operative position by means of a horizontal pusher shaft 263 (FIGURE 6) which is supported for longitudinal sliding movement in a sleeve 264. The sleeve 264 is supported for longitudinal adjustment in a collar 265 which is in turn fixed on the horizontal leg of a support bracket 266, the vertical leg of which is fixed on the lower bed plate 36. The sleeve 264 is provided with a longitudinal slot and a pin 267 is fixed in the shaft 263 and extends through the slot to limit longitudinal movement of the shaft 263 in the sleeve 264 and to thereby limit inward and outward movement of the jack push-in cam 260.

The outer end of the shaft 263 is engaged by the rear end of a bell crank 270 (FIGURE 7) which is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the upper end of a support bracket 271 that is fixed at its lower end on the frame 20. The forward end of the bell crank 270 has a downwardly depending control pin 272 connected thereto and to the lower end of which one end of a Bowden wire 273 is suitably secured. The opposite end of the Bowden wire 273 extends down the front of the machine (FIGURE 2) and is connected to the clutch shifting yoke 33. Thus, when the yoke 33 is moved to the position shown in FIGURE 2 (to impart rotary motion to the needle cylinder), the push-in cam 260 is moved inwardly to the operative position closely adjacent the needle cylinder. On the other hand, when the yoke 33 is shifted to the left in FIGURE 2 so that the clutch element 32 engages the reciprocatory drive pinion 31, the Bowden wire 273 is released so that the tension spring 262 (FIGURE 6) withdraws the jack push-in cam 260 to the outermost inoperative position, away from the needle cylinder, as shown in FIGURE 6.

A jack rocking or push-out cam 280 is positioned closely adjacent the lower surface of the upper bed plate 42 (FIGURES 6 and 8) and in advance of the auxiliary selector levers 246, 247 (FIGURE 14) and operated in such a manner that the lower ends of the jacks J are rocked outwardly just prior to the time that they pass the inner ends of the selector levers 246, 247, and during each forward swing of the needle cylinder. As shown in FIGURE 8, the jack push-out earn 288 is supported on the rear end of a lever 281, which is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the lower surface of the upper bed plate 42. The forward end of the lever 281 has a reading finger 282 connected thereto by a bracket 283. The reading finger 282 (FIGURE 10) is adapted to engage a pattern wheel 284 that is supported in adjusted position on the hub 240 by any suitable means, such as a set screw 284a (FIGURE 9). The pattern wheel 284 is provided with low pattern areas or cutouts 285 (FIG- URE 10). The free end of the reading finger 282 is resiliently urged into engagement with the outer periphery of the pattern wheel 284 by a tension spring 286 (FIGURE 8) that is supported at one end on the bracket 211 and at its other end on the lever 281. When the finger 282 is in engagement with the high surfaces of the pattern wheel 284, the push-out cam 280 is held out away from the cylinder 40 in an inoperative position, however, when the free end of the reading finger 282 drops into one of the cutouts 285 on the pattern wheel 284, the spring 286 urges the push-out cam 280 into engagement with the upper ends of the jacks J to rock the lower ends thereof outwardly so that certain of the jacks may be selected by the selector levers 246, 247 during each forward stroke of the needle cylinder.

An auxiliary jack raising cam 290 (FIGURE 14) is positioned immediately following the selector fingers 246, 247 so that the cam engaging butts 147 of any selector jacks that are not rocked back to their innermost positions by the selector levers 246, 247 will engage and ride up the cam 290. The raised jacks J will in turn raise the corresponding auxiliary jacks A so that their butts follow the dotted line path 291 (FIGURE 14). In order that the auxiliary jacks may be raised at this point, the end cam 61 has been out out as at 292. The butts of the needles corresponding to the raised auxiliary jacks A are also raised along the dotted line pathway 293 and the needles are thus raised to the shed or latch clearing level as they approach the knitting station. The hooks of these raised needles are moved up along the dotted line pathway 294 to pick up the yarn Y from the yarn feed fingers 58 and form stitch loops thereon since these needles have been raised to shed level. On the other hand, those jacks J whose lower ends have been rocked back into the cylinder by the selector levers 246, 247 are not raised by the auxiliary jack raising cam 290 and their corresponding auxiliary jacks A and needles N follow the level pathway and remain at tuck level so that they pick up the yarn Y and form tucks but do not shed the previous stitch loops held thereon.

In order to knit heel and toe pockets of the type of non-run fabric described in the aforesaid copending application Ser. No. 354,998 now abandoned, every other selector jack is provided with a pattern butt 148a (FIGURE 14) which is adapted to be engaged by the selector lever 246 during alternate forward swings of the needle cylinder so that the corresponding needles remain attuck level. The intervening pattern jacks J are each provided with a pattern but 14% which is adapted to be engaged by the selector lever 247 during intervening forward swings of the needle cylinder so that the corresponding needles remain at tuck level. For example, the even numbered pattern jacks I would be provided with the butts 148a and the odd numbered pattern jacks would be provided with the butts 148b.

This arrangement of selector jacks and selector butts is satisfactory to reciprocatorily knit the type of non-run fabric in which the partial courses that are knit while the needle cylinder swings in a forward direction contain what may be termed a 1 x 1 arrangement of tuck and plain stitches and in which the tuck stitches are staggered or stepped as these partial courses are successively formed. In each of the partial courses that are knit while the needle cylinder swings in a reverse direction, plain stitches are formed on every needle. However, it is to be understood that this patternof tucks and plain stitches 13 may be varied to form other patterns, such as adjacent pairs of tuck and plain stitches.

Method of operation The needle cylinder is continuously rotated in a counterclockwise or forward direction to knit the leg portions of the stocking, as shown in FIGURES l and 16 to form the make-up, the turned welt 300, the shadow welt 301, and the leg 302 in any desired and conventional manner. The leg 302 can be plain knit throughout or it may include any desired pattern of plain and tuck stitches. Upon completion of the knitting of the leg, the drive mechanism of the machine switches to impart reciprocation to the needle cylinder 40 to knit the heel pocket H. Substantially half of the needles are raised to the high inactive level indicated by the dash-dot lines 167 in FIG- URE 14 so that their butts pass above the stitch cams while the butts of the remaining needles are at the lower active level indicated by the dash-dot line 155.

The main pattern drum 90 is rotated to a position where the cam 192 (FIGURE 1) raises the control rod 186 to thereby lower the running or left-hand stitch cam 64 to a position slightly below the position of the reverse or right-hand stitch cam 65 so that longer stitches are formed when the cylinder swings in a forward direction. The striper drum 97 is moved in a step-by-step manner by the racking pawl 98 so that one of the cams 204 engages the lower end of the control lever 1031) each time that the needle cylinder begins to swing in a forward direction so that the reverse stitch cam 65 is backed away from the needle cylinder to the inoperative dotted line position shown in FIGURE 14. The cam 204 moves out of engagement with the lower end of the control lever 103k at the beginning of each reverse swing of the needle cylinder so that the reverse stitch cam 65 moves back into operative position to form a partial course of plain stitches in every needle wale as the needles in the active group move from left to right in FIGURE 14 and successively pass over the running stitch cam 64 where they are raised to shed level, then lowered by the center cam 66 and the reverse stitch cam 65 to form plain stitch loops on every needle.

At the beginning of the knitting of the heel pocket, the roller 122 (FIGURE 4) is lowered into alinement with the cams 235, 236 so that the racking pawl 22 (FIG- URE 7) imparts a step in movement to the control shaft 213 of the auxiliary selector drum 210 at the beginning of each forward swing of the needle cylinder and another step in rotation at the end of each forward swing of the needle cylinder. As shown in FIGURES 11 and 12, the pattern wheels 242, 243 are offset relative to each other so that when the needle cylinder swings in a reverse direction, the reading ends of both of these selector levers 246, 247 are on the high or peripheral surface of the pattern wheels 242, 243.

During one forward swing of the needle cylinder 40,

the reading end of the lever 246 is in one of the cutouts 244 of the pattern wheel 242 while in the next forward swing of the needle cylinder, the reading end of the lever 247 is in one of the cutouts 245 of the pattern wheel 243. Thus, during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in a forward direction, the selector lever 246 is moved inwardly to operative position while in the intervening swings of the needle cylinder in the forward direction, the selector lever 247 is moved inwardly to operative position.

It, for example, the even numbered pattern jacks I have the butts 148a thereon (FIGURE 14), then during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in a forward direction, the lower ends of these jacks will be rocked back into the slots of the cylinder by the selector lever 246 and will not ride up the auxiliary jack raising cam 290 so that the associated needles form tucks. However, the odd numbered pattern jacks (which do not have the pattern butts 148a thereon) have their lower ends rocked out by the push-out cam 280 so that they do ride up the auxiliary jack raising cam 290 and their associated needles are raised to shed level along the dotted pathway 293 where they then pickup the yarn and form plain stitch loops thereon. In the next forward swing of the needle cylinder, the pattern butts 1148b on the odd numbered needles are engaged by the selector lever 247 to rock these jacks I back into the slots of the needle cylinder so that they do not ride up the auxiliary jack cam 2590 and their associated needles remain at tuck level while the even numbered jacks J (which do not have the pattern butts 14811) remain in the outwardly rocked position so that their butts 147 engage and ride up the auxiliary jack raising cam 290 and their associated needles are raised to shed level to form stitch loops thereon.

While the partial courses of plain stitches are being knit with each swing of the needle cylinder in a reverse direction and partial courses of alternate plain and tuck stitches are being knit with each swing of the needle cylinder in a forward direction, the number of active needles knitting is being selectively increased and decreased to fashion the heel pocket H by means of the narrowing picks 70, 71 and the widening pick 180 (FIG- URE 14) in a well-known manner. As shown in F1"- URE 16, the non-run heel pocket is formed by first knitting a narrowed gusset G1 with the number of active needles being gradually reduced so that the successive partial courses are shortened and the idled needles hold the stitch loops along the suture line 303. To knit the next gusset G-Z, the needles along the suture 304 are switched to inactive position and the number of needles knitting is gradually increased in a widening operation and the endmost stitch loops of the partial courses of the gusset G-2 are joined to the stitch loops of the last partial course of the gusset G-l, along the suture line 304.

In knitting the narrowed gusset 6-3, the partial courses are gradually reduced in length and the endmost stitch loops are held on the idled needles, along the suture line 305. In the first partial course of the gusset G4, groups of endmost needles (along the suture 305) are switched to active position and the stitch loops are joined to the endmost stitch loops of the partial courses of gusset G3l The length of the successive partial courses of the widened gusset 6-4 is gradually increased and the endmost stitch loops are joined to the endmost stitch loops of the partial courses of the gusset G1, along the suture line 303.

The narrowed gusset G-S is then knit by gradually idling the endmost needles to thereby gradually reduce the length of the partial courses along a suture line 306. This completes the knitting of the heel jocket and as the machine switches into circular or rotary knitting with all of the needles being switched to active position, the stitch loops held on the idled needles along the suture line 306 are joined to the first complete course of the foot 307.

At the beginning of the knitting of the foot 307, the pawl control plate 316 is switched to the solid line position shown in FIGURE 13 so that the auxiliary selector drum 210 stops rotating with the selector levers 246, 247 in engagement with the outer peripheral surface of the pattern wheels 242, 243 so that the selector levers 246, 247 are in inoperative position. The push-out cam 280 is also in inoperative position and the reverse stitch cam 65 moves inwardly to the operative position and remains there during rotary knitting. The jack push-in cam 260 (FIGURE 7) moves inwardly between the main jack raising cam and the auxiliary jack raising cam 290 to prevent the accidental raising of any of the jacks J during rotary knitting. The running stitch cam 64 is then raised up to the normal level to form the normal length of stitch loops during this rotary knitting of the foot 307.

The non-run toe pocket T is formed of fashioned gussets to form what is commonly termed a gusset toe and with the partial courses that are knit during reverse swings of the needle cylinder being formed with plain stitch loops in every wale while the partial courses that are knit during forward swings of the needle cylinder being formed of alternating trucks and plain stitches, in generally the same manner as the partial courses were formed in the heel pocket H. The toe pocket is knit on a group of needles positioned on the opposite side of the needle cylinder from the group of needles which knit the heel pocket so that the toe opening may be closed by a seam extending beneath the foot of the stocking. Therefore, when beginning the knitting of the toe pocket T, a different group of needles is switched to the inactive level to pass above the stitch cams while the partial courses of non-run fabric are formed on the remaining active needles.

At the beginning of the toe pocket, the auxiliary selector drum 210 is again moved in a step-by-step manner so that the selector levers 246, 247 operate on the pattern jacks J and selectively raise certain needles to shed level while permitting the remaining needles to remain at tuck level during each forward stroke of the needle cylinder. The right-hand or reverse stitch cam 65 is again moved inwardly to operative position with each reverse swing of the needle cylinder and moved outwardly to inoperative position with each forward swing of the needle cylinder so that the needles can selectively knit and tuck. The lefthand stitch cam 64 is again lowered to form slightly longer stitches with each swing of the needle cylinder in a forward direction.

The gusset G6 is first knit (FIGURE 16) in a narrowing operation with needles gradually being moved to idled position and retaining the stitch loops thereon along the suture 308. At the beginning of the knitting of the gusset G7, groups of needles are activated together at each end of the active group of needles to form the first partial course along the suture 308. The partial courses of the narrowed gusset G-7 are gradually reduced in length with the idled needles retaining the stitch loops along a suture 309. The last gusset G8 is widened along a suture 310, the suture 309, and the inner end of the suture 308. Upon completion of the widened gusset G-8, the usual circular or rotary loopers rounds are formed, not shown, and the toe is closed by a looped or sewed seam 311 while the loopers rounds are simultaneously cut off and discarded.

In the knitting of non-run fabric in the heel and toe pockets (on the single-feed machine disclosed herein), the partial courses of the fashioned pockets that are knit when the needle cylinder swings in a reverse direction contain normal size plain stitch loops in every wale while the partial courses that are knit when the needle cylinder swings in a forward direction contain a 1 x 1 pattern of elongated or larger plain stitches and tucks.

As disclosed herein, the selection of the needles to form plain stitches and tucks is controlled by means of the auxiliary selector drum 210 and the selector levers 246, 247 during each forward swing of the needle cylinder. This is in contrast to our above-noted copending application Ser. No. 396,231 where the needle selection was alternately accomplished by a needle butt engaging cam and a jack butt engaging cam.

While the present invention has been described in connection with the knitting of non-run fabric during the knitting of both the heel and toe pockets, it is to be understood that the invention could be utilized to knit the non-run fabric in only the heel or toe, if desired.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claim.

We claim:

1. In a circular knitting machine for knitting seamless 16 stockings having rotary knit portions and at least one reciprocatorily knit fashioned pocket therein, said knitting machine having a needle cylinder, drive means for imparting rotary and reciprocatory movement to said needle cylinder, needles disposed for vertical movement in slots in the cylinder, a knitting station including a reverse stitch cam normally positioned to engage and raise said needles to shed level and a running stitch cam positioned to lower said needles to stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops on each needle with rotational movement of said cylinder, main pattern control means including a pattern jack positioned below each of said needles and disposed for vertical movement in the slots in said cylinder, and primary jack selector means positioned in advance of said knitting station and including a selector drum, a racking gear carried by said selector drum, a first pawl adapted to engage said racking gear, a racking link having said first pawl supported on one end thereof, and means associated with the other end of said racking link for reciprocating the same in timed relationship to movement of said needle cylinder to impart stepby-step movement to said selector drum, a main jack clearing cam, selector levers operable by said selector drum to engage said pattern jacks and control their vertical movement in said cylinder and to thereby raise certain of the needles to shed level while permitting the other needles to remain at tuck level during the rotary knit portions of the stocking; the combination therewith of auxiliary pattern control means operable during the reciprocatory knitting .of the fashioned pocket in the stocking by a group of adjacent active needles for controlling these needles to form non-run fabric in the pocket, said auxiliary pattern control means comprising (a) means associated with said reverse stitch cam for positioning the same in operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in the reverse direction to lower all needles of the active group to stitch drawing level to form plain stitches thereon in alternate partial courses of said fashioned pocket, and for moving said reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in the forward direction,

(b) means associated with said running stitch cam for lowering the same below the level of said reverse stitch cam during reciprocation of said needle cylinder, and

(c) auxiliary jack selector means positioned between said primary jack selector means and said knitting station and comprising (1) an auxiliary selector drum including (A) a control shaft supported in a vertical position for rotation, and

(B) a pair of pattern wheels supported for circumferential adjustment on said control shaft,

(2) an auxiliary jack clearing cam and an auxiliary selector lever operable by each of said pattern wheels to engage said pattern jacks and control their vertical movement in said cylinder and to thereby raise certain of the needles of the active group to shed level while permitting the other needles of said active group to remain at tuck level during each forward swing of said needle cylinder to form a predetermined pattern of plain stitch loops and tucks in intervening partial courses of said fashioned pocket,

(3) a racking gear carried by said control shaft,

and

(4) a second pawl supported on a medial portion of said racking link and being adapted to engage said racking gear and impart step-by-step movement to said auxiliary selector drum during the reciprocatory knitting of the fashioned pocket.

References Cited -UNITED STATES PATENTS Butz 6648 La Montague et a1 66-48 Dowell 6650 X Getaz 66-48 FOREIGN PATENTS 599,610 3/1948 Great Britain.

MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

W. C. REYNOLDS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE FOR KNITTING SEAMLESS STOCKINGS HAVING ROTARY KNIT PORTIONS AND AT LEAST ONE RECIPROCATORILY KNIT FASHIONED POCKET THEREIN, SAID KNITTING MACHINE HAVING A NEEDLE CYLINDER, DRIVE MEANS FOR IMPARTING ROTARY AND RECIPROCATORY MOVEMENT TO SAID NEEDLE CYLINDER, NEEDLES DISPOSED FOR VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN SLOTS IN THE CYLINDER, A KNITTING STATION INCLUDING A REVERSE STITCH CAM NORMALLY POSITIONED TO ENGAGE AND RAISE SAID NEEDLES TO SHED LEVEL AND A RUNNING STITCH CAM POSITIONED TO LOWER SAID NEEDLES TO STITCH DRAWING LEVEL TO FORM PLAIN STITCH LOOPS ON EACH NEEDLE WITH ROTATIONAL MOVEMENT OF SAID CYLINDER, MAIN PATTERN CONTROL MEANS INCLUDING A PATTERN JACK POSITIONED BELOW EACH OF SAID NEEDLES AND DISPOSED FOR VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN THE SLOTS IN SAID CYLINDER, AND PRIMARY JACK SELECTOR MEANS POSITIONED IN ADVANCE OF SAID KNITTING STATION AND INCLUDING A SELECTOR DRUM, A RACKING GEAR CARRIED BY SAID SELECTOR DRUM, A FIRST PAWL ADAPTED TO ENGAGE SAID RACKING GEAR, A RACKING LINK HAVING SAID FIRST PAWL SUPPORTED ON ONE END THEREOF, AND MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH THE OTHER END OF SAID RACKING LINK FOR RECIPROCATING THE SAME IN TIMED RELATIONSHIP TO MOVEMENT OF SAID CYLINDER TO IMPART STEPBY-STEP MOVEMENT TO SAID SELECTOR DRUM, A MAIN JACK CLEARING CAM, SELECTOR LEVERS OPERABLE BY SAID SELECTOR DRUM TO ENGAGE SAID PATTERN JACKS AND CONTROL THEIR VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN SAID CYLINDER AND TO THEREBY RAISE CERTAIN OF THE NEEDLES TO SHED LEVEL WHILE PERMITTING THE OTHER NEEDLES TO REMAIN AT TUCK LEVEL DURING THE ROTARY KNIT PORTIONS OF THE STOCKING; THE COMBINATION THEREWITH OF AUXILIARY PATTERN CONTROL MEANS OPERABLE DURING THE RECIPROCATORY KNITTING OF THE FASHIONED POCKET IN THE STOCKING BY A GROUP OF ADJACENT ACTIVE NEEDLES FOR CONTROLLING THESE NEEDLES TO FORM NON-RUN FABRIC IN THE POCKET, SAID AUXILIARY PATTERN CONTROL MEANS COMPRISING (A) MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID REVERSE STITCH CAM FOR POSITIONING THE SAME IN OPERATIVE POSITION WITH EACH SWING OF THE NEEDLE CYLINDER IN THE REVERSE DIRECTION TO LOWER ALL NEEDLES OF THE ACTIVE GROUP TO STITCH DRAWING LEVEL TO FORM PLAIN STITCHES THEREON IN ALTERNATE PARTIAL COURSES OF SAID FASHIONED POCKET, AND FOR MOVING SAID REVERSE STITCH CAM TO INOPERATIVE POSITION WITH EACH SWING OF THE NEEDLE CYLINDER IN THE FORWARD DIRECTION, (B) MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID RUNNING STITCH CAM FOR LOWERING THE SAME BELOW THE LEVEL OF SAID REVERSE STITCH CAM DURING RECIPROCATION OF SAID NEEDLE CYLINDER, AND (C) AUXILIARY JACK SELECTOR MEANS POSITIONED BETWEEN SAID PRIMARY JACK SELECTOR MEANS AND SAID KNITTING STATION AND COMPRISING 